Seeing an idea that was developed over a few beers come into reality and be executed at this scale is incredibly exciting. I can’t wait to see what sort of entries come in and the images being projected onto the sails on 23 April at the Samsung GS4 launch.

Below is a presentation on social media monitoring and engaging influencers that I presented this week at a General Assembly training day on the basics of social media. The audience was made up of a mix of people from agencies and inhouse B2B and B2C companies.

The presentation was purposely pitched to provide simple tips that people could take away immediately and get started with.

I would love to hear from you if you liked the presentation and found it useful. Likewise if you don’t agree with anything I have included, or have anything to add, drop a note in the comment box below.

I am typing this as I watch the AFL Grand Final between Hawthorn and Sydney. On my Tweet stream, sophisticated, fashion forward female friends are tweeting about the wine they will be drinking whilst watching the game. There are female umpires awarding goals and mums sat with their family in the crowd supporting their beloved team as they strive for AFL’s biggest prize. The same will happen tomorrow for the NRL grand final granted, but the numbers will be less. Rugby League you see is more of a bloke’s game.

NRL is the kind of game that tolerates and holds up people like Matthew Johns as role models and is also the game that still has young women dancing, poorly in most cases, at games in skimpy outfits despite the weather often being bitterly cold.

Why does the NRL persist with this? The dancing quality is typically poor, even if individually they can dance competently. However, it definitely isn’t a dancing or performance spectacle like the cheerleader performances (made up typically of man and women) in the US.

Cheerleading isn’t shown on the TV, so it can’t be considered a vital part of securing all important TV rights.

Hell even if male titillation at the game could be justified, when they’re performing the cheerleaders are so far away it is impossible without binoculars to see them clearly. When they’re not dancing they are wrapped in blankets and jackets, so no opportunity for leering there either.

Is reason for them being present? Their presence reinforces that NRL is a game just for blokes. A game for yobs. A game for people that think women wearing skimpy outfits performing poorly choreographed routines is entertainment.

I say yes. I say cheerleaders do have a place at the NRL and could in fact be a core part of engaging women with NRL.

If it was up to me cheergirls wouldn’t be 16-22 years of age they would be between the ages of 5-15. They would not be the same group week in and week out, but instead be made up of rotating groups of ballet and dance troupes from local communities.

Mum, Nana and non yob dads would attend games to see their little girls perform. The little girls would have the opportunity to dance in front of big crowds of appreciative crowds. Though most importantly the NRL would have a proof point for how it is making game experiences more about women.

]]>http://matthewgain.com/2012/09/should-the-nrl-do-away-with-cheerleaders/feed/0Publicity vs PRhttp://matthewgain.com/2012/07/publicity-vs-pr/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed
http://matthewgain.com/2012/07/publicity-vs-pr/#respondSat, 21 Jul 2012 19:10:06 +0000http://matthewgain.com/?p=1729Do you know what is the difference between publicity and PR? I have worked in the PR industry for more than ten years and it is only today that I have been served a definitive definition, courtesy of that clever PR Warrior fellow Trevor Young.

According to Trev:

Publicity is when you’re in it for a short-burst of editorial coverage; media relations is about building strategic relationships with targeted journalists, editors, and broadcast producers with a view to generating sustained editorial exposure over the longer term.

Of course PR is more than just media relations, but I like Trev’s definition. It is simple, short and highlights how media relations and for that matter PR is about long term strategy.

This is not to say publicity is bad. I have undertaken a raft of publicity tasks in my career and call on gun publicists within my team regularly. Media relations and publicity; one is not better than the other, they’re just different.

I wish I had a dollar for every time I’ve been asked by small business owners if they should block social media access to their staff. My answer is always no. Social media represents an enormous opportunity for small businesses to increase sales, better connect with customers and partners, and market themselves in a cost-efficient manner. Besides, if you block social media platforms at your work, your staff will simply use their phones to access Facebook.

So if there is no way stopping your staff using social media whilst at work, how do you ensure they are doing so responsibly and not placing you or your business in any potential harm?

]]>http://matthewgain.com/2012/07/should-i-block-employee-access-to-facebook/feed/0Branding 101 – tips for small business ownershttp://matthewgain.com/2012/06/branding-101-tips-for-small-business-owners/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed
http://matthewgain.com/2012/06/branding-101-tips-for-small-business-owners/#respondSat, 23 Jun 2012 21:34:23 +0000http://matthewgain.com/?p=1725I have recently been invited to be a regular writer for MYOB’s blog for small business owners. This is my first paid writing gig, so I am quite excited by it. There is a whole series of posts that I will be making roughly every second week.

Below is the an excerpt of the first post that has been published. It is on branding tips and is aimed at small business owners. I hope you enjoy it. Feel free to leave comments either here or over on the MYOB blog.

Are you a Holden family or a Ford family? Do you drink VB or Tooheys? Is it Colgate or Macleans in the bathroom cabinet?

A lot of our buying decisions are not rational, but instead emotional. They are made because that is what your mum did, because you like the colour or look of the packaging, or because you like the football team they are associated with. In short we are influenced by the brand of a product. Whilst sponsoring football teams and large scale advertising campaigns are out of reach for small businesses, giving thought to your brand is still incredibly important.

]]>http://matthewgain.com/2012/06/branding-101-tips-for-small-business-owners/feed/0Go Try It On – a review and overviewhttp://matthewgain.com/2012/05/go-try-it-on-a-review-and-overview/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed
http://matthewgain.com/2012/05/go-try-it-on-a-review-and-overview/#respondMon, 28 May 2012 23:00:36 +0000http://matthewgain.com/?p=1723

The last week or so has involved me trying on clothes in the morning, heading into my little girl’s room (the only room in the house with a full length mirror) taking a photo and then uploading it to Go Try It On, a relatively new online and mobile community that rates outfits uploaded by community members. OK, so I might be one of the few people on the network over the age of 21 and almost certainly the only one uploading pictures with a cot and children’s toys in the background, but I love it. I think the network has huge potential for fashion and clothing brands. Below are some thoughts from me on Go Try It On.

What is it:

A mobile based social network, where users can upload photos of outfits they are planning to wear and then nominate the type of event they are intending to wear it – a work thing, a casual day, for a wedding etc. Once uploaded anyone on the network, assuming the user hasn’t adjusted their privacy settings to show to only friends, can rate the outfit as either, wear it, or change it. Once your picture is up there the scores rattle in very quickly and typically within half an hour you will have 40 or so votes and a definitive community decision on your outfit.

Beyond the ability to simply upload outfits, you can also select stylists to review your look. These stylists may be your friend, or simply someone you have found in the community whose style you like and whose opinion you value. If you are selected as a stylist by a member you are then notified every time they upload an outfit and invited to rate their look.

In addition to fashion, members also ask the community to rate make-up, accessories, shoes and can also upload two different outfits and ask the community to vote for which is their favourite.

The community can be accessed via a web-browser, though the best experience is undoubtedly via the iPhone app, which supports the use of the inbuilt camera.

What about privacy:

Despite the fact you access the app via either via Facebook Connect or Twitter the app only details the first letter of your surname (I come up as Matthew G from Sydney Australia) and doesn’t allow any way for users to get access to your Facebook or Twitter accounts. You can’t even search for users. If a user isn’t already your Facebook Friend there is no way to find users in the community.

To help protect the privacy further there is a nice blur spot option that allows you to blur out your face on any uploaded photos. You can also use it to blur out anything else you might want to.

Given the community is made up of a lot of young girls I think these measures are sensible and commendable.

Tone of the community:

The creator of Go Try It On, Marissa Evans, and her team have gone out of their way to manage the sentiment of the community so that it is more focussed on positivity and suggested improvements rather than bitchiness and laughing at outfits. When providing feedback on an outfit you have rated as ‘change it’ the most insulting you can be is, ‘it isn’t appropriate for this event’, or ‘this doesn’t do you justice’. The outcome of this is that the feedback on the site is very positive, but you can’t help but think some of the fun is taken out of fashion when you can’t laugh at those who you believe less fashionable.

Opportunities for brands.

There appears to be limited involvement from brands at the moment. Sephora, Grazia.IT and Vente-Privee USA are listed as featured stylists, but beyond that it seems pretty limited. In my opinion this could be the perfect platform for a fashion retailer. You could imagine an account that is managed at an individual shop level where shoppers could upload an outfit they are considering and get the community to rate it.

Currently there is a range of online fashion brands that are integrated into the app including ASOS, JC Pennyand ShopBop.com. These stores can be accessed by community members when reviewing outfits, so that suggestions with links to a location where the product can be purchase can be made.

How could Go Try It On be better?

There is not much I don’t like about Go Try It On, this is a very cool application. The app is currently only oniPhone, so it would be great to see it on Android and other platforms, though I guess you could access it via your mobile browser. The team behind Go Try It On have a pretty cool blog, where they provide information on fashion generally, though it is primarily US focussed. It would be nice if this and potentially other fashion blogs were featured in the app under a news section.

What do you think?

What do you think? Do you think this will take off? Do you think fashion and beauty brands should be taking note?

The above is an image of a website I have created for my good friend Azumi Lehman, who is one of the country’s best harpists and one half of Gliss Flute and Harp. The other half of Gliss Flute and Harp is Lisa Osmialowski, who has played for some of Australia and the world’s leading orchestras and opera companies and even recorded soundtracks for movies Happy Feet and Baz Luhrmann’s Australia.

Elizabeth is a long time friend of Azumi’s from university. Both Elizabeth and I were fortunate enough to have Gliss Flute and Harp perform at our wedding.

Their new website can be found at GlissFluteandHarp.com.au. It has been built in WordPress and makes use of the Kin – Minimalist Photography WordPress Template. This template is designed for photographers, but we chose to use this theme to take advantage of the way it nicely presented portrait orientated photography. This photographic orientation best representing the tall nature of the harp and the often standing Lisa.

The objective of the website was to create a simple online home for the business where potential clients could get a feel for the type of events Gliss Flute and Harp deliver, hear some of their music, understand the elegance of the instruments (especially the harp) and make booking enquiries.

The website has been kept incredibly lean with an always present menu on the left side. This was done purposely having reviewed many other similar business sites that were complicated, didn’t make it easy to get access to contact details and often times failed to present images of the performers as they typically appear at events. Ensuring we covered off all of these, but especially the last point was particularly important as we figured the elegant aesthetic of the harp could be a draw card in itself.

We chose to host the music on Youtube, rather than directly on the site, to take advantage of the potential of people coming across their performances on Youtube and coming to the site that way. We also figured Youtube would an easy way for people to share and experience their music irrespective of the platform or device they were accessing the site.

For those with a little more technical understanding we used the WordPress SEO Plugin by Mervin Praison, to assist the site’s performance in Google search results. Keywords such as wedding, flute, harp and concert were used amongst others.

What do you think? I am a self taught web producer and lack nearly all the skills of the true professionals. If you have simple suggestions that you think we could make at no cost then I would love to hear them.

Thanks to Azumi and Lisa for the chance to create your web presence. Thank you also needs to go to Elizabeth who helped throughout and developed the majority of the copy found on the site. Credit also needs to go to Ben Walton, who created the photography on the site.

]]>http://matthewgain.com/2012/05/gliss-flute-and-harp-website-build/feed/0Social activism: how to respond to an attack on your social media presenceshttp://matthewgain.com/2012/02/social-activism-how-to-respond-to-an-attack-on-your-social-media-presences/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed
http://matthewgain.com/2012/02/social-activism-how-to-respond-to-an-attack-on-your-social-media-presences/#respondWed, 29 Feb 2012 11:01:01 +0000http://matthewgain.com/?p=1718

This post provides five tips on how to respond to a social activist attack on your brand or company social media presences.

Protesting has changed

Organisations’ social presences, be they on Facebook, Youtube, Twitter or elsewhere, are quickly becoming primary targets for activist organisations attempting to change company policy or build awareness of questionable business practices. Of course this is not to say the days of the old ‘hey-hey ho-ho’ chants, signed petitions and pickets are over, but there is a definite rise in activist activity on the internet and organisations need to be prepared to address and respond to these instances when they occur.

How best to respond to an attack by an activist organisation

Pre-attack create escalation procedures - Ensure comment traffic system and escalation procedures are in place across all social presences so that negative comments are quickly escalated to the PR and corp affairs team where additional escalation can be made quickly.

Investigate the source of the activity and engage – My mother always said treat the problem, not the symptoms. Identify the source or sources that are convincing people to come to your social presence and engage with them directly. Your engagement efforts with the activist influencers will be more effective that engaging with every single individual on the page. In my experience this engagement will be welcome and shows a willingness to address their concerns.

Don’t stick your head in the sand – Be transparent with your community on the channels they are attacking you on and make commitments to investigate their concerns and provide more information.

Be timely – an hour is a long time in the social media world. Get responses and information to your community as quickly as possible. Delayed silence will suggest you are trying to spin the situation.

Listen and respond – There is no magic number of negative comments that denotes when a company should change its policy, but any considerable number of negative comments should be taken seriously. Comments on Facebook and other social presences are like a barometer on your customers’ feelings towards your brand and products. Only a fool doesn’t listen to their customers.

Do you have any other tips you would add? Do you agree with what I have listed?

]]>http://matthewgain.com/2012/02/social-activism-how-to-respond-to-an-attack-on-your-social-media-presences/feed/0Trust Barometer and its implications for social mediahttp://matthewgain.com/2012/02/trust-barometer-and-its-implications-for-social-media/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed
http://matthewgain.com/2012/02/trust-barometer-and-its-implications-for-social-media/#respondFri, 24 Feb 2012 11:03:47 +0000http://matthewgain.com/?p=1716This post was first published on the Edelman Australia Blog.

The Trust Barometer findings presents interesting implications for businesses in the area of social media. Below are four aspects of the report that we thought are worth highlighting that should help justify an increased spend in the area of social for your business or organisation.

Listening to customer needs and feedback

As the above graphic highlights, listening to customer needs and providing feedback is the best way to build trust among the general public in Australia. Social media is one of the most effective ways to do this. If you are not listening and responding to the conversations occurring in the social space around your brand you may be missing one of the most effective ways to grow your brand’s or organisation’s trust.

CEOs are least trusted company spokespeople

Trust in CEOs as a company spokesperson has fallen, whilst ‘a person like me’ has risen. This is an ongoing trend that the Trust Barometer has been highlighting for some years. Community managers and normal employees speaking on behalf of organisations in social media are an effective way of building trust in your brand, especially in times of crisis.

Limiting your spokespeople to handful of very senior people is not the most effective way to build trust. The days of control communication are over. Open up your communication channels so a wide range of ordinary employees can speak on behalf of your your brand within social media. Of course that is not to say training and governance for people commenting on your brand/organisation in social media is not necessary.

Trust in social media as a credible source of information has doubled

Social media as a trusted source of information about a company has consistently risen over recent years. The 13% above are people that listed the fact they trust information they find about a company on social media ‘a great deal’. It does not mean that 87% of people don’t trust information they read about a company within social media.

If you haven’t already the time to take the jump is here. People are on social media researching your company and are trusting what they read. If you aren’t present you are missing an opportunity to influence and grow trust.

Repetition overcomes skepticism

Australians need to be exposed to the same message multiple times before they will trust the information. If you are simply relying on traditional channels you are missing opportunities to repeat your message.

Social media is one of the most cost effective means of communicating frequently. Take advantage of it.

What are your thoughts?

Does the above make sense, does it align with your experience of implementing social media and growing trust within your organisation?